Thanks Pat. The photo below shows the first stages of the base. I Wanted to have the gun sled being pulled up a hill, yet I wanted the Oxen firmly attached to th upper most part of the hill. To solve this i used a wiid wedge and this gave the 2 heavy oxen a solid foundation. Once attached I then carved a yoke and pull bar out of bass wood.
The yoke was very difficult to fit to the oxen standing side by side and yet have the pull bar postitioned so it could attach to the sled without hitting either ox. It was a ton of work getting this to look right. I question if Andrea ment for these to be set up as a team pulling something, or individually. The way the heads are positioned, I suspect indivdually.
The other issue was the pull bar. In one famous painting it shows the oxen pulling the sleds with chain,,,,I can't imagine how the chain would keep the sled from running into the oxen when going down hill. I went to an Oxen pull and there is was suggested I use a "S" style bar. Good torque from the oxen shoulders to the lowhitch of the sled, yet capable of holding a sled back from the oxen when going down hill.
You will see Knox in a trial fit on the eventually rocky outcropping looking down, and first glimpse at the soon to be Teamster converted from (any one care to venture) a recent release
